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Cutriss Staff Member
Joined: 24 Jan 2002
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0. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 5:40 am Post subject: Honoring Bill Cravens, 1942-2007 |
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I feel somewhat disappointed that the gaming community is just now taking notice of this, three weeks later, but nonetheless, I was saddened to learn last night that Bill Cravens passed away on March 29th, 2007. Bill Cravens was a pioneer in the coin-op distribution industry, and it's quite possible that without his involvement, the arcade as we know it would not exist at all in the United States.
Bill Cravens, as you might have guessed, is the father of Ryan Cravens of Barcade and Betson Enterprises, who have worked hard to bring you DDR SuperNOVA as well as other games. I'm sure he was proud for his sons to be a part of the rebirth of arcades in the US. Bill Cravens was survived by his wife Marylin, his sons Ryan and Todd (also a Betson employee), and his daughter-in-law Alicia, who also works in the amusement industry.
According to the AAMA press release, both the AAMA and the AAMCF are establishing a fund in Bill's name to benefit multiple diabetes foundations. If you would like to make a charitable contribution to the Bill Cravens fund, you can send a check made payable to the AAMCF to:
AAMA headquarters
450 E. Higgins Road, Suite 201
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 _________________
Sentient Mode is capable...
Last edited by Cutriss on Thu Apr 19, 2007 8:00 am, edited 2 times in total |
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RBCF retunes Trick Member
Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Location: 2P side |
1. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 5:46 am Post subject: |
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Pretty disappointing. It's nice that this has been passed on to the next generation, though. _________________
QWERTYkid911: If someone posts porn, then this thread will perfectly represent the internet.
Slowpoke: Ah, so that's how He created the universe so quickly... He was hopped up on caffeine. Thanks for clearing up that philosophical mystery...
PooingCavy: (About difficulty levels) If I could make it up, it would be: Water, Soda, Coffee, Red Bull, ADHD |
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Pakwan Kenobi Maniac Member
Joined: 17 Jan 2002
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2. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 6:50 am Post subject: |
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Why did it take so long to show this on sites such as Gamasutra? Is this according to the family's wishes?
Regardless, it is sad when someone who has seen the arcade industry from its beginning passes away. My condolences to the Cravens family.
Side note: it's cool that he is represented in one of the stages of the original Street Fighter. That's kind of neat. _________________
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Cutriss Staff Member
Joined: 24 Jan 2002
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3. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 7:49 am Post subject: |
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I found another report of it dated on April 10th, but apparently he passed away in the middle of ASI 2007, so it is surprising to me that this news didn't circulate faster. Apparently the AAMA didn't issue a press release until the 3rd, so it is possible that Bill's family wanted a private ceremony first.
Also, there was this in the Gamasutra article that I also noticed in the press release: Quote: | Both the AAMA and the AAMCF are currently working on raising funds on behalf of Bill and the Cravens family. Monies raised from this fundraiser will go towards one or more diabetes foundations in Billâs name. The AAMA is now accepting contributions towards the Bill Cravenâs Fund. Please make all checks payable to the AAMCF and send to AAMA headquarters: 450 E. Higgins Road, Suite 201 ⪠Elk Grove Village, IL 60007. | I'm going to throw this into the article summary now. _________________
Sentient Mode is capable... |
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Ghettobarney Trick Member
Joined: 21 Dec 2006 Location: Failing Pandy |
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RBCF retunes Trick Member
Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Location: 2P side |
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...ddr Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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6. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 3:32 pm Post subject: |
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It is very sad to see Bill pass away. I am very grateful that he brought the whole arcade experience to the US. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have met all of the cool people that I know from DDR, ITG, etc. Props to his 2 sons that followed his footsteps and continued on with arcading and hope that in the future that people will continue the legacy. |
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RBCF retunes Trick Member
Joined: 23 Feb 2006 Location: 2P side |
7. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 5:23 pm Post subject: |
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It kind of puts thing in perspective when you realize how one person started the whole thing, doesn't it? One moment affects culture and communities for years to come. _________________
QWERTYkid911: If someone posts porn, then this thread will perfectly represent the internet.
Slowpoke: Ah, so that's how He created the universe so quickly... He was hopped up on caffeine. Thanks for clearing up that philosophical mystery...
PooingCavy: (About difficulty levels) If I could make it up, it would be: Water, Soda, Coffee, Red Bull, ADHD |
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Auspher Trick Member
Joined: 08 Oct 2005 Location: Medina, Ohio |
8. Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 8:15 pm Post subject: |
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R.I.P. Bill Cravens...I do hope that Ryan and his family are getting through this alright. _________________
"See with eyes...unclouded by hate.." |
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...ddr Trick Member
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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9. Posted: Fri Apr 20, 2007 8:32 pm Post subject: |
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RBCF retunes wrote: | It kind of puts thing in perspective when you realize how one person started the whole thing, doesn't it? One moment affects culture and communities for years to come. |
Right. I wouldn't of have met most of my friends if it wasn't for him. I didn't know anything about him, but researching about him and finding out the whole story behind the arcade scene, I appreciate his whole concept of bringing the gaming industry to a new level. I hope more developers come up with more ideas on making the arcade scene more entertaining for gamers, so that we can keep arcading alive. |
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Catastrophe Trick Member
Joined: 04 Mar 2002 Location: Worcester, MA |
10. Posted: Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:14 pm Post subject: Bill Cravens |
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That's very sad. I had no idea that he had accomplished so much.
...and what PDOGG said. |
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Baka of the Orochi Trick Member
Joined: 26 Jan 2002 Location: Chicago area |
11. Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2007 5:49 am Post subject: |
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Yikes, that's some horrible timing too. I just learned who Bill was too not too long ago (and his role with the Street Fighter series).
Not the first time I've known people to pass away in their sleep as a result of complications with diabetes (assuming that's what it was) =/ _________________
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